The volatile memory is cleared by removing power from the system for longer than 30 seconds. The nonvolatile memory on the motherboard is restored by following the steps below.

Download the latest BIOS for this system and operating system from the HP website.

Follow the instructions on the website to flash the BIOS. Flashing the BIOS will reset it back to factory settings.

Enter F10 setup.

If the ownership tag is set, manually clear it, save changes, and exit.

Re-enter F10 setup.

Set defaults and exit (this will clear passwords and any other settings).

The RTC and Super I/O battery backed-up memory is cleared by removing the battery found on the motherboard, allowing the board to sit for longer than 60 seconds, then replacing the battery.

The LAN EEPROM is inaccessible to the consumer via any publicly available tools. There are programs used by HP in manufacturing and research and development that allow access, but these are not available outside of HP. The DIMM SPD EEPROM is not readily available to the consumer, however there appear to be tools publicly available to read and write this part. To eliminate the possibility that they could contain sensitive information, remove the DIMMs or use one of these tools.